Title: The UncleanAuthor: Nuzo Onoh
First Published: October 19, 2020
Publisher: Canaan-Star Publishing
Pages: 65
Genre: Horror, Magical Realism, Short Stories, Supernatural
Format: Ebook
Source: Kindle Unlimited
Rating:
A dead child is cast into the evil forest by the clansmen in a burial ritual steeped in dark superstitions. His grieving mother, Desee, resorts to desperate and terrifying measures to bring him back to life. Desee’s quest will force her to make some terrible choices, and with the diabolical help of a powerful witchdoctor, embark on a harrowing journey that will end in deadly consequences, culminating in a trial by ordeal underneath the infamous Tree of Truth.
Review
African folk superstition with a heavy dose of Christian spirituality come together to form an absolutely horrifying novella about womanhood in a traditional patriarchal society. The story follows doomed Desdemona, named after the same Desdemona from Shakespeare’s Othello. Desdemona, or Desee for short, is married off to a seemingly wealthy suitor and what follows is a chilling story about arranged marriages, brutal competition between sister wives, social stigma, folklore, and grief.
My heart absolutely bled for Desee and the cruel hand she is dealt, especially as compared to her sister. There were many scenes that I found to be genuinely frightening and monsters both supernatural and human. The ending gave me one of the biggest payoffs I could have ever expected that I did not see coming, and it shocked me so much I laughed out loud. This story was brimming with righteous anger at the systems that hold down women and I was in awe of Nuzo Onoh’s talent in weaving a tale that could make me feel such intense emotions.
The Unclean is an underrated gem of a novella that started my reading year off with a bang and it’s stuck with me. I fell head over heels for Nuzo Onoh’s prose and I know I will definitely be checking out more of her books. This short story is also included in the collection Unhallowed Graves.
Quote
“How could I walk amongst the living when I knew that my son walked amongst the damned, the restless and angry souls of the accursed?”
Content Warnings
View Spoiler »About the Author
About Nuzo Onoh
Nuzo Onoh is a Nigerian-British writer. She grew up the third of eight children of the late Chief Mrs Caroline Onoh, a former headteacher. Her father was Chief Dr. C.C Onoh, the wealthy landowner, lawyer, politician, and former governor of Anambra State.
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